A Vintage Suitcase Makeover – Full Tutorial!

A couple of months ago Kendra asked me to share this lovely little project with her readers over at the Kreative Life! It was such a fun project (and it turned out way better than I ever thought it would!) When we were unpacking the living room last week my hubby pulled this out of a box and I realized… I never posted it here! Silly me! So here it is… my painted vintage suitcase makeover!

If you’re anything like me you are loving the vintage suitcase trend that’s going on right now. I tend to be drawn towards anything that contains things (read as: stores all my crap out of sight) so vintage suitcases are perfect for me! In addition to larger suitcases I have found adorable children’s suitcases, hat boxes… even a vintage bowling ball bag! The key (for me) is finding that perfect colored bag… the one that looks amazing with all the rest of my pretty things (read as: hoards of useless antiques that aren’t really useful but I need to have anyways).

Of course it’s hard to find suitcases in baby blue and cream… not impossible but hard! It’s much easier to find old beaten up, scuffed up suitcases in need of a little TLC! I have never tried painting a suitcase before but I figured… what’s the harm? So I went to my local antique store and found the perfect culprit suitcase! A teeny little make up box in light yellow… the exterior was actually in great shape and might look great in a home that used more yellow. In my home it looked a bit more washed out cream then yellow. Either way it was only ten bucks so I didn’t feel bad painting it!

Supplies:

That’s it! Didn’t expect it to be so short did you? I like to surprise people… I’m fun that way.

The first thing I did was tape off the entire bottom of my suitcase. I wanted the hardware to stay it’s original color and I wanted to paint each section a different color for a striped effect. Once it was taped off I took this little cutey outside and spray painted the top stripe and the handle with a looking glass finish spray paint. I wasn’t sure I would like the shiny finish but I had some paint left over from my Mirrored Mason Jars and didn’t want to buy more paint for a little suitcase… I figured if I didn’t like it I could always paint over it!

But if you’ve known me for five seconds you know I’m a sparkle freak… so I LOVED the shiny finish! So I decided to run with it and bought little bottles of metallic finish craft paint for my lettering… since they were only 1.47 a bottle I thought it was worth the splurge ;).

After the first section dried I removed the frog tape, taped off the top and painted the bottom stripe! (Again using leftover seafoam paint from my dresser reveal). Then I painted the middle stripe. All of this painting took a while but I was able to watch several episodes of Once Upon a Time while waiting… so it wasn’t too bad! Once the stripes were painted I printed off a copy of my quote: in this case my blog logo from Happily Ever After, Etc. I went back and forth about it for a while… but in the end I just thought it fit this little suitcase best. I’m looking forward to seeing it NOT on my computer every day!

To transfer my logo I used the old trace the letters on the backside of your paper with pencil and then rub on the front side of the paper trick. It transferred the lettering like a charm… then all that was left was filling in the logo with paint! I choose a small paint brush and very carefully painted the letters and wax seal… twice. I wanted to make sure they looked crisp and sharp.

I love how it turned out! I was a little iffy on the color scheme at first but I think it looks just like spring! What do y’all think… is painting suitcases up your ally? I’d love to see more!

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Welcome back! I'd love to be friends and see what else you would like to read about! Leave me a comment and then sign up for your very own FREE paint planner.... so that you can keep track of every single paint color with ease!

I just purchase one through an auction with Goodwill. I good a mint green one which is difficult to find. I will use mine as a bridal shower gift containing all honeymoon items for when to go to Positano.

Didn’t it turn out cute? I never thought of painting a suitcase either… until I saw something on Pinterest where a suitcase was painted (I think to be an end table)… it got me thinking! Just because something starts a color I don’t like doesn’t mean it needs to end that way! haha! Thanks for stopping by Julia!

What a great idea. I have this old, a very old suitcase, I always love to use it but because it’s too old I want to look for a new one. you gave me an idea, now I don’t need to look for a new one. i will make over my suitcase. thank for sharing

It turned out way cuter than I expected! I was super hesitant at first (I’m not stellar at painting free hand) but I just had to try! You should totally make one… then show me what you did! I’d love to see!

Very cute! I recently picked up a vintage train case and gave it a complete makeover. U never would of thought of using a looking glass paint. I’m not to good at spray painting either. I love how yours turned out, very pretty!

[…] A Vintage Suitcase Makeover! – If you’re anything like me you are loving the vintage suitcase trend that’s going on right now. I tend to be drawn towards anything that contains things (read as: stores all my crap out of sight) so vintage suitcases are perfect for me! In addition to larger suitcases I have found adorable children’s suitcases, hat boxes… even a vintage bowling ball bag! The key (for me) is finding that perfect colored bag… the one that looks amazing with all the rest of my pretty things … read more! […]

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I'mBetsy, Home Decor Enthusiast, Yorkie Mama, Crafter, Blogger, Picky Eater, Chief Mess Maker, Antique Hoarder and Graphic Designer. You can generally find me working on (attacking with a paintbrush) the 3 bed, 2 bath home we are currently renting! Our home might not be perfect but it is ours & if you hang out long enough you'll see that what we lack in know-how we make up for in passion!

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